Morrison School Bell - Morrison, CO - Community Commemoration on Waymarking.com

This bell was rung twice daily during the school year from 1880 to May 1955. The bell, installed in 2009, is on a beam above a bridge on the recreational path in Morrison. There is a brass plaque which tells the story of the bell and its journey back to the ownership of the Town of Morrison.

"This past week the Zuni Sign Company from Evergreen worked with town staff to erect an arch above the trail to place a 240 pound bell which originally hung in the Morrison School which opened in 1875 and placed the bell in the belfry which rose above the stone school building somewhere around 1879. The bell was manufactured in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania in 1879 by the A. Fulton Sons & Company.

The Morrison School was abandoned in 1955 when the new Red Rocks Elementary School was opened. The school building, made from native sandstone, was constructed by George Morrison, for whom the Town is named. The school district deeded the building to the Town for use as a museum. This proved to not be feasible and the building was sold to private interests to be used as a residence.

The bell mysteriously disappeared from the former school building during the period it was unoccupied. It turned up in a private bell collection in Evergreen. Upon the death of the collector, all the bells in the collection were bequeathed to a private foundation in Hastings, Nebraska which was formed to benefit the Hastings Community College.

Morrison resident, Dan Rohrer, encouraged the Town to recover the bell for its Centennial celebration in 2006. Town staff worked with both the foundation and estate managers to work out a loan for display at the Centennial celebration held in Morrison. Following the Centennial, Rohrer encouraged the Town Board to try to purchase the bell from the foundation. After several months of discussion, the Town was able to secure the bell's return to Morrison.

Now the owner of a 240 pound bell the Town had to sort out where it could be placed to be seen by former students, history buffs, and visitors taking into consideration protection of the bell from vandals and potential bell ringers. Interested persons in town were asked to recommend potential sights for display. Finally, the site on the trail near the 2 Creeks Plaza was selected." The entire article may be found at (visit link) .

Subject: Town Commemoration: Centennial Date of Founding: 1880 Date of Commemoration: 2000 then 2009 Address: Bear Creek Trail Overview Photograph: Yes Detail Photograph: Yes Web site if available: [Web Link]

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